Mary and I were watching our favorite crime drama on TV this evening. The episode was about a veteran of the Pearl Harbor attack and was good but not great – until the final scene really got my attention. In that scene the main character uncharacteristically opens up about his experience in the Kuwait war. He tells his friend that he was different before the war. When he returned home, it was confusing, not like in the war. At least there it was simple – you knew what you had to do and that your buddy had your back; he would die for you and you would do the same for him. Then he delivered the closing line:
“It shouldn’t have to take a war to make life so simple.”
I was struck by him calling war “a simple life” and how he so quickly distilled it down to “your buddy has your back and you have his”. Soldiers are from all walks of life, thrown together in the military more or less by accident. They are different from each other in so many ways and have different motivations. How do circumstances like this lead to such strong bonds between strangers? I am told that the soldiers realize very quickly that they must rely on each other for survival. Things can go wrong, the unplanned happens and so on. They have no guaranties of success or even survival. All they really have is the soldier next to them and faith that the military organization will do right by them; faith and trust in their fellow soldier.
In Matthew 6:19 we are told that we should not put our trust into earthly things.
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
Instead we are to invest in friendships and loving relationships, John 15:12-13:
Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
If you are like me, you probably chuckled at these old stories. Modern grain elevators are protected and “moths” cannot possibly get all the grain at once. Today we have home security systems and the systems in stores are fancier yet. Thieves, what thieves? We, mankind, are smart and good at what we do. It is easy to let pride push humility out of the way and to believe that we are in control. Think again! There are swarms of locust in East Africa right now that are destroying crops like in biblical times. Security systems notwithstanding, if a riot was to break out, and they do, you are left with nothing.
If you think these things only happen to other people, consider all you have lost because of the COVID-19 pandemic – in just the last few weeks! Movie cinemas, restaurants, theaters, concerts and large gatherings. Also gone are schools, play grounds, sports, jobs, shopping and contractor house calls. And let’s not forget haircuts and toilet paper! The destruction is not limited to things. It is now difficult to trust people physically close to us because they may carry the virus. Do you still think that old Bible story is so farfetched?
However, there is a bright side. Yes, we are different from each other and we are motivated by different things. It looks like we have been thrown together at our church by accident. (I know that God has caused our paths to cross but initially it appears accidental and that is how we respond). Despite all of this, consider how we have responded to this major disruption in our lives. We are writing cards and letters to each other. We are calling our church family just to say “Hi” and see how they are doing. We offer help to a friend in need. (OK, this one is not so different than before but then the St. Paul’s family is a very special group of people.) We are getting to know each other all over again and that puts us in a position to trust each other. We know that our neighbors have our back and that we have theirs.
Many of us are realizing just how important spending time with each other really is. There is nothing quite like seeing a friend’s smile or hearing your name being called out in a crowd. My hope for the post COVID-19 era is that we will sit just a little closer to each other in the pews and that coffee hour once again becomes one of the social highlights of the week.
When it comes right down to it, all we have is Faith in God and each other.
It shouldn’t have to take a pandemic to make life so simple
Frankly Speaking 
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